Stolen
by L.G. Lena
Summary: Pirates steal what they want. Treasure, gold, ships. Sometimes innocence, happiness, and safety. What do you do, when a friend is hurt?  LuNa
1. Chapter 1

_**Stolen**_

Disclaimer: I own nothing of One Piece or its universe save what I myself create. This goes for this and all chapters cause I'm too damn lazy to write one of these for every chapter. So there. :P

P.S. RE-uploaded do to there being an issue with a timebreak that didn't show. Sry!

**Chapter 1**

A pirate takes what he wants, when he wants, however it pleases him. Perhaps that's why so many had turned to piracy, even with the looming threat of the Marines constantly around. Maybe that's why she had turned to it as well, even though she had hated pirates. Of course, that bumbling idiot had something to do with that decision as well, but that was beside the point. It was all well and good to take what you wanted, until you forgot that other pirates where thinking the same thing. And sometimes, what they wanted and what they took wasn't pleasant.

She groaned as sleep fled her and reality forced its ugly way in. Blood ran from her lips as she swiped a dry tongue across them, cuts and scabs re-opening at the slight pressure. Blood had crusted her swollen eyes shut and she had to rub them against one of her upraised arms, stifling a scream at the agony it caused to her eyes and hand. Manacles bound her wrists above her head, preventing her from lying down. That was fine with her; she didn't want to see what they had done to her hands. The tools she was going to use to accomplish her dreams and goals.

Boot steps sounded heavily on the planks above her head, and the woman instinctively cringed and tried to curl in upon herself, gasping as ribs shrieked in protest. One eye slitted open, giving her a hazy view of her prison. Dark, bare, and ominous, it was still empty of all but her. It wasn't often they left her alone, likely due to the storm that had sprung up last night. Or had it been morning? Time had no meaning in a place with no light. She knew it was only a temporary reprieve though. After all, when there was a female prisoner on a pirate ship full of men who went months between seeing a woman…well, things happen. Pirates will take what they want, when they want, and however they want.

Oh, she had fought, right after they had captured her. She'd been out, alone in town buying groceries and clothing. Something she'd done a hundred times before! Only this time, someone with a vendetta had stalked her. She remembered a blinding pain to her skull, and then only darkness, waking up in her current situation. Woke up to the leering faces of several men and their captain. "Break the new dog in boys." Was all he'd said before turning around and leaving the room.

She'd done everything she could, kicking and biting, elbowing when she could. After the third broken nose, they'd had enough. Her mind was muddled and full of holes after the first solid blow to the temple had knocked her out. When she regained complete consciousness, her clothes were gone and blood was everywhere. Her hands felt like they were soaking in fire, and her ribs grated disturbingly whenever she drew too deep of a breath. Bite marks marred her flesh everywhere and a terrible ache came from deep inside. Only moments had passed before her cell's door was flung open, another crew member making his way inside.

"Ah, the bitch is awake." He had proclaimed to those waiting outside the room. Waiting for their turn for a go at her.

She'd fought again, though it was nothing like before. He had laughed as he pinned her legs down, slapping her across the face when she'd spit at him. A ring had torn a line across her cheek, leaking fresh blood down her face and neck. He'd had his way, roughly and ignoring the pained moans coming from her. Then pulled out a small knife as he tucked himself back inside his pants. "Something to remember me by."

The wound was scabbed over, healing. The kanji for, "Love" carved into her thigh. She'd fought them as hard and as often as she could that first week, until her body couldn't stand up to the punishments inflicted on her for it. Her ribs were healing crooked, she knew. Cuts from other's knives were infected and broken bones were the first place struck whenever she tried to fight. So, she closed her eyes as they continued to come and use her body, willing her mind to drift free and focused on memories of her crewmates. She ignored the feel and sound of flesh slamming into flesh, the pain as her body was roughly jostled. She whimpered as a knife bit into her arm, the man on top of her fed up with her silence.

Occasionally they threw a bucket of icy water at her, in order to 'clean her up'. It was when this happened; she knew the captain was coming for a visit. She dreaded his visits more than any other. He was a tall man with tangled brown hair and green eyes that were as dead and emotionless as a corpse. He took pleasure in forcing the screams from her, hurting her for the sake of it.

"Still waiting to be saved, little doggy?" He'd asked her once, digging chipped and dirty nails into a fresh gash across her thigh. His lips peeled back in a smirk as she shrieked, eyes popping open and making her lose the sight of her beloved friends. "Would you like to see them again?"

It was a trick, she knew it was. They'd never let her see them again, but it still didn't stop the hope that lit her eyes. The captain laughed, something sinister sliding behind that dead gaze. "I can arrange that. How about that green-haired swordsman?"

Her eyes grew wide and she nearly bit through her tongue to stifle the scream tearing at her throat as his features shifted and moved, hair shortening and darkening to a familiar green. In moments, the man responsible for everything, had changed into one of the people she loved most in this world save for the dead eyes. He flashed Zoro's smirk at her. "Do you prefer being fucked like this, bitch? I can arrange for your choice, you know. I know them all. That blonde chef, your ridiculous 'captain', even that little deer-man. How about you pick? If not, I'll pick for you.

Only a soft whimper escaped her, the horror of the situation fully hitting her. They were her safe place, the light in all this darkness. And in one moment, this man had torn all of that away from her, turned it into a nightmare. How could she pick? She couldn't, wouldn't defile them by picking a preferred tormenter. Dimly, she would realize later that he must have eaten some type of Devil's Fruit to be able to take another's form. True to his word, when no answer came from the helpless woman, he had stayed in the form of the swordsman, reveling in the agony and despair he was causing with every thrust. Tears spilled over when he reached his climax and finally reverted to his true form. "See you tomorrow. Well…not me, as me." He'd called back cryptically.

For days, he'd assaulted her, always in the form of one of her nakamas, till she couldn't even think of them without crying and fighting off mind-numbing terror. He had taken everything from her that meant anything. If her hands had been free, she would've bitten through her wrists weeks ago. She knew he had won then, that he had accomplished whatever goal he'd had in his sick and twisted mind.

Heavy steps on the stairs leading down below deck echoed into the room. The slight tap of metal heels let her know; the captain was paying a visit. _Oh god, not again. Who will it be this time?_ She moaned, terror and despair pressing in on her heart, threatening to stop it with the force alone. He always found a new way to hurt her, make her scream and cry. He'd ripped one of her lower canines out last time. The time before that, he had dug a knife into her knee. Her body shook uncontrollably as the steps sounded closer, pupils contracting to pinpoints.

Tiny, inarticulate sounds of fear bubbled past her lips as the door swung open. She could barely see, but the light from beyond the door showed a hazy red and blue shadow. _Oh please, not Luffy._ A calloused finger stroked down her cheek, an imitation of tenderness as it precisely ran over every open wound. "Well then, I think it's time we return you. Though, who'd ever want damaged goods like you, is beyond me. Let's send your friends a little message shall we. I'm going to need some help from you first though."

Light flashed briefly off metal and the woman instinctively shied away as far as her battered body and chains would let her. The blade swiped through the air, and cut off a lock of her filthy hair. "Now to let them know we're serious…" Light sparkled again on metal, before her world erupted into nothing but intense, fiery pain. She heard someone screaming, as if far off, vaguely aware it was herself. Hours, days it seemed dragged by as metal sawed through flesh, grated on bone, until finally the darkness swept her up and away.

...

There was no telling how long she'd been out, only that the pain that had sent her away, was now dragging her harshly back to wakefulness. Waves slapped against the side of the ship, timbers creaked as it went over those same waves, but otherwise there was no sound. Blessedly, the shadows crept in around her again and stole her back to unconsciousness. She faded in and out, hallucinating as time passed and no one came with food or water. She still heard nothing but waves and wood, the occasional gull cry or whale call.

Her right eye could open again, the swelling subsided, but the left wouldn't yet. _I'm dying. Always thought I'd die rich._ She thought hazily, thirst raging. She licked condensation off the wall she was chained too, but it wasn't enough. A jolt shot through the ship, a loud _bang_ echoed around the room. Her heart skipped a beat as the feared sound of human life above her reappeared. Voices drifted down, frantic and hurried. They were running around up there, doors banging open and closed, and what sounded like barrels being overturned. _Is there a storm?_ She wondered sluggishly, blinking slowly.

"…mi! Nami!"

_Sounds like….Luffy? Another trick?_

"Nami-san!"

_Sanji too?_ The door flew open, interrupting anymore questions her muddled brain could think of. She shrank back from the figure highlighted in the doorway, breathing harsh as they stepped closer. "Na…Nami?"

Luffy dropped to his knees in front of her, rage and nausea battling for dominance. He extended a hand towards her, heart shattering as she cried out and flinched away. He pulled off his shirt as the other's footsteps approached, ignoring her struggles to get away from him as he wrapped it around her. The navigator froze, staring unblinkingly as the Straw-Hat captain reached up to her wrists, deftly popping the lock on each. He placed his hat over her hands as he guided them down slowly from the position they'd been forced into for the last three months, not wanting her to see the mangled mess they had become. Small cries came from her as blood rushed freely into the appendages and muscles protested movement after so long. "Don't look, Nami. I-I'm sorry. I didn't find you…in time."

She shuddered as he pulled the sash around his waist off, body shaking violently even more as he wrapped it around her head, shrouding her left eye. _It's a trap, a trick._ The thought ran through her mind, over and over. Any moment now, the caring façade would break and that horrible leer would break through. She bit her tongue as the scarf was tied into place, that bright, fiery lance of agony slicing through her eye and head again.

"Sanji…let Chopper know we found her." The blonde halted in the doorway; unable to see clearly into the room's dark interior, other than Luffy's form crouched in front of something. "Now, Sanji."

His heart sank at the serious, dismal tone. He swallowed, opened his mouth, swallowed again before choking out the question whose answer he feared. "Is…she alive?"

A long silence, the sound of movement and what sounded like a wounded animal's cries. Panic gripped at him and he took a step into the room. "Yes. Gimme your jacket and go tell Chopper to be ready."

The blonde was desperate to see his friend and confirm for himself she was truly alive, but no one argued with Luffy when he used 'that' voice. The jacket slid off his shoulders and he shrugged out of it, tossing it close to where his captain still crouched, before turning to head back to the Thousand Sunny, grabbing Zoro and Usopp on the way. Whatever had happened beyond what they knew, their captain thought they weren't ready to see it.

A hand reached out to the jacket, pulling it over to wrap around the trembling woman as well. Teeth ground against each other as Luffy noticed how thin, emaciated, his navigator had become. There was nothing to her but skin and bones. And blood and wounds. He didn't know a person could have so much blood, let alone live without it inside them. "Nami, I'm taking you away from this place. And I'm going to kill them. I promise." He vowed, more to himself then to her. He doubted she was hearing anything he was saying, just staring at him with those wide eyes, waiting for him to do something horrible. Guilt lashed through him; he felt, no _knew_, this was his entire fault.

Thin arms slid under thinner legs and shoulders, trying his best to cradle her gently as he lifted her off the floor. She panted, pushing to try and get away from him, lips moving in words that came with no sound. He did his best to ignore it all, how she was trying to get away from _him_, how blood started to drip again to the floor that was stained black from so much blood already soaked into it. He concentrated instead on not jostling her, keeping her struggles down, and most importantly, her hands covered. It was a miracle, really, when she passed out half-way to the deck.

The ship was old, a relic. The fact that it still floated was beyond comprehension. But it had served its grisly purpose, hiding the woman away long enough before being abandoned. "Sink it." He said after crossing onto the Sunny, Chopper dancing around him anxiously.

A hard look ensured the order carried out, as well as warning them away from the precious bundle he carried. Robin, always cool and collected, gasped at the sight of her friend, a lone tear falling. Zoro looked away, knuckles white on the handles of his swords, before going to carry out the order. The three vanished into the sick bay, door closing firmly behind them and shutting everyone else out. Silence invaded the normally boisterous ship and its crew as they waited to hear any news of their returned navigator.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

AN: Few brief notes before I start the story!

First, thank you so very much for all the wonderful reviews. They really made my day. I gotta say, Love Cook Sanji, I love the name. It made me smile. How they learned where she was, well that will be explained. I haven't decided on an ending quite yet, I'm gonna let the story take me where it does. There will be healing, but this is more a story on stolen innocence in multiple forms, primarily the innocence of youth. There will be OOC-ness, simply because the crew is going to be facing something they've never faced before. So, pardon Luffy being more serious and Sanji being not so puppy-in-heat with Nami. They're all going to be aged by this. But, I'm not taking that all away! So on with story!

…

He leaned against the wall, hands clenching and unclenching sporadically. He watched numbly, eyes never leaving the ginger-haired woman on the table, as the little reindeer bustled around her. He watched as, even in sleep, she labored to breathe. The way her muscles twitched whenever she was touched, no matter how lightly, and listened to the frightened moans her dreams were causing. Chopper lifted one slim wrist, forcing an analytical eye to survey the damage done to her hand and not focus on the fact that this was one of his dearest friends.

"Can you fix them?" Luffy asked in a low voice.

Gently, the little reindeer laid the hand back down. "I-I don't know. I'd have…have to re-break most of them. There's t-too much damage." He sniffled, swiping a rough hoof over his eyes. "They need to be broken precisely where they're healing wrong. I don't have that precision."

The captain nodded, pushing off the wall and moving to stand next to the sleeping navigator. "We have to. For her dream." With one last look, the man purposely strode outside, startling the others on deck. "Zoro. Nami needs you."

The swordsman blinked before quickly pushing himself up from where he had been half-dozing against the side of the ship. "Right." He muttered, brushing past the straw-hat and into the interior of the sick bay. He hadn't gotten a good look at her when she had been first brought in and was nervous what awaited him inside.

"Luffy, what can we do?" Robin asked quietly, noting Sanji restraining himself from rushing after the swordsman. "Will she be alright?"

A ghost of a smile lifted his lips briefly as Luffy scanned the rest of his crew. "Make dinner Sanji! Lots of meat! We're going to get her dream back!" With that said, he vanished once more, the smile leaving him as soon as the door had shut behind him.

…

Inside, Chopper had started washing the blood from the thin woman's frame as best as he could, casting a nervous glance at the swordsman. He couldn't finish bathing her with a man in the room! Hopeful eyes looked to the black-haired man as he re-entered the room with them, until he noted the grim, determined look in his face. A wave of fear and nervousness crashed through his small body when Luffy bolted the door shut.

"Chopper, Zoro's accurate enough. Can you fix them with his help?" He asked softly. "I'll…I'll hold her."

"What? Accurate enough to do what?" Zoro demanded, not liking the cryptic words and instinctively tightening his grip on the hilt of one sword. He looked up from where his eyes had been glued to the woman he often argued with. "Why do you need to hold her?"

"Her hands." Came the soft reply. "They're the path to her dream. We have to fix them." He removed his hat, placing it on the desk nearby. "We need you to break them so Chopper can fix her."

The green-haired man blanched; face draining of color as he stepped away from them, bumping into the wall behind him. He couldn't believe what they were asking of him! _I can't. Can't they see she's been through so much already?_ Anger washed over him, but Luffy kept staring at him calmly. "How? How can you even think to put her through that? Look at her, I won't do it!"

Luffy did look, closing his eyes and knowing this was the right path. Nami never smiled more brilliantly than when she was talking about drawing up a map of the entire world. "You have to. She'd do the same for you, if it meant you could become the greatest swordsman." He strode over to stand next to the table where the woman lay fitfully, crying out in her sleep at some nameless terror. One hand brushed back a few strands of ragged, filthy hair. "The faster we do this, the easier it will be on her. I don't want her to wake up to see this!" Determination and desperation both warred for dominance in the captain's eyes as he stared back at the first mate.

Zoro flinched, knowing if their places were reversed, he'd do anything it took to be able to continue his swordsmanship. But, this was Nami. She didn't have his pain tolerance and she was so weak and injured already. _What will damage her more though? The physical pain or the emotional?_ Slowly he drew one of his swords, closing his eyes and steeling himself up for what had to be done as he made his decision. _Please don't let this be the wrong decision._ "Show me where."

Arms wrapped around her shoulder, arms, and wrists, firmly locking her down in place on the table. Inarticulate sounds came louder from her, the imprisonment finding its way into her nightmare and the woman struggled against her bonds. A nod was given to Chopper, who gulped and quickly prepped a needle. There was no strong anesthetic on the ship, not that they could use one anyway. She was so far gone, it would likely kill her. But he could at least give his friend something to take the edge of the pain off.

The little reindeer took a couple of deep breaths after injecting the mild painkiller, reaching for a handful of gauze and tiny splints. "H-here." He pointed to a spot on the smallest finger on her left hand, bent at a grotesque angle. It would be better to get the most fragile break out of the way before she started fighting. He'd have to move quickly once they started. With any luck, Nami wouldn't wake up, or at least not for long.

An unearthly silence descended as Zoro took a firm, two-handed grip on his sword, steadying his breathing pattern. _I can't miss. Flat of the blade, just the tip, should do it._ His eyes snapped open and the sword flicked out, the bare tip of it striking and snapping the bone. The eye not covered by the sash shot open as Chopper darted in, quickly setting the bones so that the two ends aligned once more and securing a splint around the site. A scream erupted from deep within her, body bucking on the table against the hold on her. Luffy grunted, straining to keep a hold on her. "Keep going!"

…

"Let go of me!"

"Sanji-san, don't!" Robin pinned him to the floor, multiple arms gripping him to the planks of the ship as the blonde chef lashed out and fought to free himself.

"They're hurting her! NAMI-SAN! Damn you, let go of me!"

Frank strode over, trusting the older woman and helping restrain the man. He looked to where Robin stood, facing the door that led to the other three as blood drained from her face. She had a third eye in the room, he knew it. Whatever was happening, it wasn't pretty but necessary. He flinched as another cry came from the interior of the ship, before cutting out half-way.

"Robin-san…what happened in there?" Sanji asked, finally given up. He looked at her, shared pain and agony in his eyes.

"They're saving her. Her and her dream." She collapsed into her chair, retracting her additional limbs and eye, unable to watch anything more in that room. She buried her face in her hands, wishing she could erase everything that had happened.

…

All three panted for air, Chopper tying off the last of the bandages. Sweat dripped from green hair, the man leaning heavily on his sword. "Any more?" _ Please tell me there's no more!_ He thought to himself, exhausted from the mental exertion the process had pushed on him. _I don't want to hurt her again._

"No, that was the last of them." Chopper scurried around, checking Nami's vital signs. "I should be able to set the rest on my own." Hooves ran over her ribcage, satisfied that the healing there was hardly advance, the bones still re-settable without needing to be re-broken.

Luffy unwound his arms from where they had trapped his navigator down to the table. He looked up as Zoro moved towards him, looking as beat as he felt. A fist flew out of nowhere at him, connecting solidly with his jaw and sending him crashing to the floor. "Never ask me to do that again." Zoro growled, before unlatching the door and making his way outside.

A hand rubbed his jaw, the doctor absently dropping an ice pack next to him before bustling back to his primary patient. Dark eyes watched the little reindeer continue washing the blood and grime away, frequently dribbling a few drops of fresh water into her mouth to start re-hydrating her. Dirt and blood only gave way to ugly bruises and inflamed cuts, more and more revealed as each layer of filth was gently washed away.

A stern look from the doctor had him facing away reluctantly so that she could be changed into fresh cloths. A scene flashed through his head, her chained and naked in that dark little room, staring in terror. "Ne, Luffy-san?" He looked over his shoulder, pointedly not looking to where his and Sanji's bloodied clothing lay in a pile. "I need to check…check that wound now. Would you hold her again?"

He nodded, knowing this moment was coming. A modest white sheet had been draped over her from the neck down, though the amount of bandages that had been applied to her nearly fully covered her body. He pushed off the floor, taking his spot again at the head of the table and using his arms to bind her to the table as Chopper removed the bloodied sash from around her head. Luffy winced; eyes shutting against what he knew was coming, before he forced them open. _The least I can do is not turn away from what she went through._

Blood caked the hair into a matted, filthy mess. A spot on the back of her head was particularly bad, where she had had it driven back into the side of the room multiple times. How she hadn't died from sleeping with a concussion was a miracle. _I'll have to keep waking her._ The reindeer thought to himself, readying a basin of warm water and the softest cloth he could find. Her face was a mess of injuries. Her nose was broken, possibly shattered, lips torn to shreds, and abrasions and gashes covered her cheek. Dark black swelling surrounded the right eye, fading into green and purple around the edges.

The captain swallowed thickly, staring at the left eyelid, slightly sunken in. The edges of the eye socket were ringed with jagged cuts. His heart hammered in his chest, a last faint strand of hope struggling to stay alive. _It could have been someone else's._ It seemed to take the little doctor forever to wash the area outside of it enough for him to risk opening it. Nami moaned in pain, not waking up as the lid was lifted, and that last strand of hope died. Nothing stared back at the two of them, just an empty hole.

The black-haired man clenched his jaws together, teeth grinding, remembering the message that had led them to their navigator, and the grisly package that had been sent with it. They had searched everywhere for her, looking desperately for some clue. No one on the island knew anything, only a few shop owners able to even remember her. No one on the docks remembered seeing her with any other people. So they had scanned the seas for sign of any ship, porting only when they had run out of fresh water and food. Then the messenger hawk had reached them, a letter gripped in one talon, a box dangling from the other.

The letter contained only a set of coordinates in it, no other indication of who had sent it or why. Until the box had been opened. The lock of hair was unmistakable; no one had that same shade of ginger color. The eyeball rolling around, had them all scrambling to get to those coordinates, even as the entire crew prayed that it was some terrible prank. _I will kill every last one of them. Every single one of them that hurt my nakama._ His stomach lurched as the reindeer cleaned the empty socket, causing Nami's eyes to flutter as the pain pulled her to the brink of wakefulness.

He had to switch his hold on her as she tossed her head fitfully, eye opening momentarily before sliding shut again, making Chopper jump back in alarm of doing any more damage to the area. "It-It's fine, I finished." Anti-septic was spread thickly on a pad of gauze before being applied and wrapped firmly in place of the area. Hooves were trembling and his little body swayed with exhaustion, both physically and mentally. He had never had to deal with something so severe and it had taken its toll on the deer. But the doctor in him wouldn't let him stop when there was still a job to do. So, he pushed on through until every wound had been tended, every bandage applied, and every anti-biotic shot administered.

He swayed dangerously, as the last shot was given. He had done everything he could for the moment; the rest was up to Nami. He had managed to get her to drink a fair amount of water, but an IV was still administered to help her recover further. It would be a long night of watching though still, she would need to be woken up every few hours. Just because the concussion hadn't led to a coma yet, didn't mean it wouldn't. The damage to her skull was extensive and would take time to heal.

"I'll watch her." The doctor startled, not realizing he had been mumbling to himself. Even more surprised that Luffy was still there. He had been so absorbed in his task; he'd forgotten his captain was even in the room. He nodded hesitantly, leaving a few instructions about waking her and to come get him if anything changed. After all, there really was nothing more to do until tomorrow or when she woke up.

He heard a chair scrape as it was dragged over to the table, the rubberman slumping into it as if the weight of the world rested on his shoulders. They all felt the guilt of not getting to her sooner, but Luffy was taking it harder than any of them. Chopper shook his head, and stepped outside, not surprised to see dusk had come and gone, the night pitch black. A tray of food was outside, food long-gone cold. He set it inside, taking a bowl of rice and piece of bread for himself, before heading to his quarters. Loud snores echoed on the deck where everyone had passed out except for Brook, silently watching in the crows nest. The doctor smiled, it was better she not be overwhelmed right away with visitors, and no one looked ready to wake up anytime soon.

…

His stomach rumbled unhappily, not used to going so long without food. He ignored it. There was no way he was taking his eyes off his charge for a single moment, lest something be missed. If something happened while he selfishly stuffed his face, he'd never forgive himself. Already he couldn't forgive himself for allowing this to happen to her. If it took an entire lifetime, he'd do whatever he could to make it up to his navigator. Even if he had to give up on being the Pirate King. The thought of obtaining that now, when one of his nakama's was so injured, seemed hollow and empty to him. Yeah, he still wanted it, but only so long as all his friends were with him and happy.

The tick-tick-tick of the clock taunted him, dragging by achingly slow, yet flying by so quickly too. He dreaded and looked forward to when he would wake her. Seeing her wake up, verified she was still alive. Asleep like this, barely breathing or moving, it was too close to being dead. But that look when she first saw him, the pure, unadulterated terror of him, still shattered him to the core when he thought about it. If he could, he'd wipe all the pain and suffering away, taking it onto himself if it would spare her from it.

"No…" His head snapped up, unsure if he had actually heard something or if it was his imagination. "…please, no!" She whimpered, head slowly rolling side to side and arms pushing at whoever was assaulting her in her dreams. "Don't…"

"Nami, wake up. It's only a dream." He shook her shoulder gently, grabbing her wrists before she could injure herself. She fought back, but the day's events had taken a toll on her abused body, leaving her with less strength than a kitten. "Come on, Nami! You have to wake up. Please wake up!"

"No, not Luffy!" She cried out, tears pouring from her one good eye. "You're not Luffy! You're not! He wouldn't do this to me!" She bolted upright, staring straight into her captain's face. She gasped, lungs constricting and heart hammering, jerking away from him and screaming.

…

AN: *Shifty Eyes* I heart cliffies! Trying to write the chapters longer, but still update quick. We'll see how that goes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**AN:** Okay, you all rock! The reviews are amazing and I gotta say, they've been really inspiring me to write. I know this one took a little longer to write, but I work 12 hour shifts 3-4 days a week and I really wanted my chapters longer. LCS…your name is still making me laugh lol. Do you know how destructive that is when I'm trying to write angst and sitting here laughing my ass off! Lol. Greencyberwolf, I'm really glad I had such an effect on you. It tells me I'm writing this the way I want to. Rizzz, this is going to be a long story most likely, I'm estimating anywhere between 20-30+, so romance will come in waaaaay later. I'll try to do some shout-outs to everyone, but I don't wanna bog down too much page space so only a couple each time. Thank you again guys, you really help me keep going on this story! Also, I'll try to find a way to answer any and all of your questions in each chapter.

…

She screamed, scrambling to get away from the man in front of her, not even realizing her hands were free until she pushed against the table with them, igniting a wave of pain. Her heels dug in, propelling her back and away, over the side of the table, IV snapping. She ignored the snapping of stitches and pain of re-opening wounds, too focused on getting away from her tormentor.

Then she was falling, reaching out for something to slow her descent, before being caught and cradled by something warm. Words drifted by her ears meaninglessly, head swimming and blinding her with how much it hurt, and she gave a low moan. Slowly, the woman was able to focus on her surroundings again, realizing just where she was and what had caught her.

He felt it, the moment she realized what had happened. Every muscle seemed to turn to iron, so tense it must have been excruciating. Shouting came from on deck, her screams having woken the crew up. He couldn't understand what they were saying, didn't even care too. His attention was focused squarely on the woman lying rigidly in his arms. She panted, trembling at his closeness, barely even moving to breathe.

"Luffy-san?" Robin called, slipping slowly into the room. Behind her, the men crowded around the door, waiting to see what would happen. "Is everything alright?"

"Aa. Get Chopper please." He sighed, a tiny bit of relief allowing itself through as Nami's eyes switched between him and the older woman, some of the fear slipping away and being replaced with a trace of hope. "Tell them…they can see her tomorrow. One at a time."

She hesitated; desire to see the younger woman warring with the need to obey her captain. "May I…?"

"Aa."

She quickly shut the door and hurried over, ignoring the protests from the male members of their little family. Nami tensed even further, if that was even possible. She tracked the movement of the woman warily, constantly flickering back to Luffy. Robin gasped as she got closer, unable to stop the sound. "Navigator-san…"

She coughed, shoving aside the pity. Nami had never been one to like pity. Instead, she forced a weak smile. "I'm glad you're back. I'll come see you tomorrow; I have a new book you may like." She nodded thanks to Luffy, before hurrying back out. It wouldn't do for Nami to see her crying. Questions pelted her as she exited the room, and she assured them Nami was fine, and they could see her tomorrow. But, getting Chopper was the priority for the moment.

Inside, Luffy continued to sit perfectly still. If he hadn't been so afraid of the fear returning full-force into those dark eyes, he'd have set her down on the table again. As it was, he continued to hold her, kneeling on the ground with her resting on his lap and in his arms. She was staring at him, studying him while still flinching every time he twitched a muscle.

"Your…eyes…"She whispered hoarsely, startling the poor man. He jumped at the sound of her voice, causing her to cry out and try to jerk away.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" He apologized, guilt and loathing filling him as that look of terror returned to her and she turned to ice on him again. "Please, Nami…"

She fought to see through her inner demons, fought to clear away the image of that face that was so like Luffy's, but not. Luffy had never looked at her like an object, had never thought of using her like he had done. Hell, Luffy was about as sexually active as a celibate rock. But that man, had destroyed that all. It was the eyes that helped. The only thing that never changed on that man had been the eyes. But the ones looking at her now, were dark as ebony.

She swallowed, cringing back when a hand lifted up to…wipe away tears? _He's crying! No, no, no! It's a trap! He's doing this for his sick sadistic pleasure!_ She tried, tried to push away the fear. Her mind cried out to be careful, but her heart…her heart believed. She focused on his eyes, not daring to look at anything else, ignoring the immense weariness settling on her as the adrenaline rush began to fade away. Everything else could be a lie, but those were truth.

"Your eyes, aren't green." She whispered. She shuddered violently, crying out in pain from it and from the other wounds she had aggravated with her fall. He stayed completely still, staring back at her, unbelieving she was talking. "His…his were green." She finished after the pain subsided.

He didn't get to respond before the door was pushed open and Chopper dashed in, skidding to a halt when he saw them. Immediately, the woman shut down again and she fought to get away from them. Her body was too weak to fight for long though, adrenaline finally wearing out completely. Her eye shut as she fainted and Luffy slowly stood up to place her back on the table.

"What happened?" Chopper asked, panicking briefly at the sight of fresh blood, before getting down to the business of patching her back up again.

Luffy flinched. "She woke up, and saw me." _She's so scared of me. It's my fault, I promised I would protect her and I didn't. This is my entire fault._ Bitter self-loathing surged through his body. "I think…it would be better if I left. Maybe Robin would like to watch her." Truthfully, he didn't want to leave, not when one of his nakama was in such a state. But, if it was better she not see him…he would go.

Chopper "hmm'ed" to himself, trying to remember what had happened as he deftly began washing away the new blood and re-sewing their navigator back up. Luckily, her hands had sustained no damage to them. "I don't think that's a good idea. Robin-san, well she was crying when she got me. Sanji would be too loud, same with Usopp. Zoro…" He gave a pointed look to Luffy. "And I wouldn't recommend Brook, he'd sing too much. Franky…who knows. And I'm just too tired." He yawned to prove his point.

Though the little deer didn't know what had happened before he'd arrived, he knew Nami wasn't the only one with wounds from this. Since the first day she had vanished, Luffy had taken it upon himself that he was the one fully to blame. Spending time with her would help. Finding her alive had already done so much for their captain. He needed this, more than he could ever realize. "We have no idea what happened to her other then what we can see." He began, cutting off the straw-hatted pirate as he began to protest. "She's been through so much, but we can only tell the physical, not the mental damage. I would expect she'd react the same way to anyone right now, with good reason."

Luffy blinked, watching the doctor tie off the last stitch. _When did Chopper grow up so much?_ He wondered, not used to the reindeer giving such an insightful speech. So, he just nodded, pulling up the chair again. "Can we move her? The table doesn't look comfortable." He asked softly.

Blink. "Ahhh! I didn't think of that!" Chopper wailed miserably, thinking how hard the table was and how much that must hurt to sleep on. "I'm a terrible doctor…" He mumbled as the other male set her on the cot set up in the room, tucking a blanket around her.

"You saved her life. That's what matters." Luffy murmured, comforting the eccentric little animal.

They both froze as Nami mumbled in her sleep, eye scrunching shut tighter, and one tear leaking out of it. They couldn't understand what she was saying, but the way she began to shift fitfully, left little doubt to the depth of her nightmare. Instinctively, fingers brushed through her hair gently, skirting around bandages and stitches. He couldn't say why he did it, but as she relaxed into dreamless sleep again, Luffy kept running his hand through her hair. Chopper stealthily made his way out, smirking to himself. _I definitely made the right decision. Now if she can just sleep through the next couple hours._ He yawned, making his way to the men's quarters, noting the other beds' occupants.

"How is she?" A deep voice broke the stillness and the doctor froze, looking over to find several sets of eyes staring at him from the darkness. He froze like a…well a deer in headlights. Zoro grunted, before repeating his question.

"B-better, but there's a long way to go."

"Hn." Satisfied, the swordsman closed his eyes again and drifted off into sleep. Taking their cue from the first mate, the rest followed his lead.

…

Minutes ticked by steadily, nothing more disturbing the silent peace aboard the ship beyond the slap of waves against the hull and the lonely call of a whale from far off. For the first time in so many days, weeks, Nami slept peacefully. Every time a demon or monster fought to intrude upon her, something stronger was able to make it go away. She smiled in her sleep slightly, dreaming of mikans, Cocoyashi village, and everyone she loved. And for once, lifeless green eyes didn't haunt her.

Next to the bed, the captain's silent vigil continued. He stared at the wall, still running fingers idly through his navigator's hair. He didn't even notice the grime and dried blood each pass rubbed off on his hand. It only mattered that it kept her rest peaceful and she not lose that small smile. _I will protect her happiness. I will never let anyone take that from her again._ He vowed it to himself, but it felt so empty to him now. He hadn't protected her, like he had promised. _What good is a promise from a captain who can't keep it?_

Sluggishly, his eyes trailed from the bed to the clock, guaranteeing he would not miss the time when she would need to be awoken again. Dawn would be approaching in a little time, the others rising with it. _Need to tell Sanji, fix her something._ She was too thin, barely anything to her. Some skin stretched over her bones. He remembered the sight and feel of ribs jutting out, spine digging into his arm.

Heaviness settled further on his shoulders as he left of stroking her hair to lift one wrist. Her skin seemed so thin, veins showing clearly through it. Bones stood out in sharp relief, and he was almost surprised they hadn't broken through that thin layer. He set it back down; frowning at the smudge he'd left on it, noticing just how dirty he was. He was shirtless still, her blood dried and smeared along his bare chest and abs, caked on his arms and hands. His own hygiene just hadn't seemed important, until it had stained her.

His shirt was ruined, still lying in a heap with Sanji's jacket on the floor, and there was no way he was leaving her for a moment alone to go get a clean one. But, he could at least clean himself off a bit. Joints cracked as he stood up, glancing back at her every few seconds as he went to go scrub himself off as best as he could in a small sink Franky had recently installed. Something about Chopper complaining about cleanliness and infection had necessitated its addition.

A few hand towels were stored a shelf next to it, and he used one of these to start removing what he could from his torso, watching the water turn a muddy red as he rinsed it off. His skin turned red where he violently scrubbed, the need to be rid of the blood combining with all the tension, misery, and anxiety of the day. So absorbed in the task, he forgot to check on Nami, her dreams taking a violent turn as the comforting presence left her.

What had been so wonderful, took a cruel twist in her shattered mind. One moment she was in Bellemere's orchard with Nojiko, the next instant the trees were burning. Horrified, she turned to her sister for help, only to see Arlong standing over her decapitated body. That hideous laugh bellowed from the sharkman's lungs as he turned and headed towards the village. A hand grabbed her wrist as she bolted after him, stopping her short and spinning her around to see Sanji and Zoro.

They shared a look at each other before turning to face her again. "Did you miss me, dog?" Sanji asked, casually tossing the cigarette dangling from his mouth away. She froze, staring up at him as his free hand came up to roughly fondle her through her shirt.

…

A choked cry finally broke through to him and his head snapped up, eyes widening to see her sobbing in her sleep, hands up as if to ward off an enemy. Tears dripped down her cheek, the blanket kicked off her. "No…" She whispered again, trying to push the cook off of her in her dreams.

…

She felt arms wrap around her from behind, pinning her own down. "I think she did." Zoro's voice sounded in her ear, a wet tongue licking up the side of her neck.

"Please…don't!" Nami begged, struggling to break free from the swordsman's grip.

The blonde in front of her laughed, removing his hand, but only to rip a tear down the center of her shirt. "But Nami-san, aren't we nakama?" He taunted, fingering the edge of the bra she wore. "But don't worry, we won't. Yet. Captain's orders, he gets the first go."

And then he was there too, that ridiculous smile shining on his face. "Yosh!" The smile vanished as her captain shrugged his shirt off, hands moving to the button on his pants. Sanji and Zoro grabbed an arm each, roughly jostling her as the held her in place. "Nami…Nami…" He said, as he stepped closer, the two on her sides shaking her shoulders still. "Wake up…"

…

"Nami, wake up!" Luffy shook her again, avoiding a hand trying to push him away. "Please, Nami! Don't hurt yourself."

"No…don't…" She sobbed harder, unable to break free from her nightmare. She could feel their hands on her, felt cloth being torn and ripped from her body. Their laughter echoed in her ears as hands touched her. "Stop!"

A searing heat shot through one arm, causing her to sit up abruptly, eye wide and pupil dilated. The pain lingered and she stiffly looked to see a hand retracting quickly from a bandage that covered her upper left arm. The images from her nightmare still fresh in her mind, she followed the hand back to its owner, focusing on his half-naked state of attire. _Oh god, it wasn't a dream, he's here! He's here and he's going to hurt me!_ Frantically, her eyes darted around the room, searching for the other two. _They must be outside, waiting._ Her chest felt constricted, unable to breathe. She gasped for air, lungs frantically trying to draw in oxygen.

Luffy was saying something, but she couldn't tell what. He was reaching out to her, and she panicked more. The tightness in her chest sharpened as she slid as far from him on the bed as she could. _No more, please no more! I can't breathe!_ Darkness swam at the edges of her vision, but she didn't want it for once. Giving in to that darkness meant they could do whatever they wanted to her. And then he had retreated, purposely getting up and going to stand as far from her as possible, still speaking in a low, calming voice.

His back pressed into the wall on the opposite side of the room, hands held up in a placating gesture. She watched him like a caged animal, silently tracking is movements. It was taking everything in him to move away from her as she struggled to pull air into her lungs. "Nami, it's me. I promised I would never hurt you."

Time dragged by, achingly slow. Neither one moved, afraid for different reasons. Her chest loosened slowly as he made absolutely no move to approach her, moving only to put his hands down eventually. She heard him speak, understood the words, but couldn't comprehend or trust them. Ever so slowly, she relaxed enough to actually look around her surroundings, always checking to make sure he hadn't moved every few seconds. Exhaustion weighed her down, making her mind work at a snail's pace.

It took far too long for her to realize just why things looked so familiar. _This…is the Thousand Sunny's sick bay._ She looked down at herself, noting at last she wore clothes again, and clean ones at that. Bandages covered so much of her body, but the itch and burn of infection was reduced. Still there, but not so demanding. _Maybe…I mean, there's no way they could know about the interior of the ship._ She looked again at the man in the room with her, flinching as the sight of him shirtless overlapped with the shirtless Luffy from her nightmare.

Then something else caught her eye, something close to him. His strawhat. Her hands flew to her mouth as she gasped, immediately making her wince and groan with pain. She trembled, seeing all the splints and bandages wrapped around them, her first look at what had happened to her. _I'll never draw again…will I?_

"I'm sorry, Nami." Luffy whispered, bringing her attention back to him. "I didn't get to you in time. I didn't want you to see that…until they had healed."

She blinked at him, looking again at the strawhat sitting on the desk. _He never had a strawhat. Just like he never had Zoro's swords, or Usopp's goggles._ A door opened in her then as she kept staring at the hat. Hope hit her hard, knocking the air out of her and tears threatened in her eyes. Movement startled her, as Luffy slowly reached for his hat. He didn't know why she'd sat there staring at it, but something had changed. "Do you want it?"

She started to reach for it, needing to physically feel the course material to assure herself it was real, stopping as she looked again at her hands. Pain, need, helplessness all volleyed for dominance in her lone eye when she looked into his. "Are…are you really…Luffy?"

"Aa, who else would I be?" He smiled, not the big goofy one she'd always associated with him, but a real one. Gingerly, he reached his arm out towards her, stopping whenever the fear showed too much in her eyes, until he was able to drop his treasured hat on her head.

She had held her breath when he'd stretched out his arm, fingers reaching up to touch the brim of the hat. He'd given this to her only twice before in the past, and never to anyone else that she'd seen. It hurt to grip the brim, even with just her fingertips, but she had to see it, had to know it was the real one. She turned it over, skimming along with outside of it and finding where she had sewn on the strings to the hat. The tiny stitches were definitely the ones she had made.

She gave a strangled cry, hunching over the precious hat and sobbing, letting out all the pain and hopelessness she had felt for so long. "Nami!" Luffy shouted as he reached out to her, too afraid to move and upset her, but needing to comfort her at the same time.

Her frame shook with the force of her tears, crying until there was nothing left in her. She didn't know when he had crossed the room to lightly place a hand on her shoulder. She was too tired to care, to feel much of anything. "It's really you." She gasped, hiccupping as the tears slowed. "You came for me."

…

**AN:** You're lucky, I didn't feel like doing a cliffhanger on this one really. Hmm, this one was a bit tough to write, surprisingly. I do better with blood and gore it seems. Hopefully it flowed alright, a thousand apologies if it didn't! I'll try harder on the next one.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**AN:** Well another chapter here and done. So a popular question I've noticed is why does Luffy blame himself. No other reason, other than his promise to protect his nakama, and that he feels he failed in that. That's all. ^_^ So let's see here, Bornfree, you're expressions were incredible! I want more! LCS, I'm not surprised at all actually lol! Notice, I added some love cook references in this chapter just for you. ;) Oh, the romance will happen as it will. I never plan these stories out, i just let them take me where they will. Moulinrouge, I salute you back! And thank you, i'm glad you liked the hat idea. Just Being Em: Where do i begin? Love your reviews, and don't worry about dictionaries. I understood you just fine! Anywho, I hope you all enjoy this. I sat down for 4 hours straight and cranked this one out. Hoping to get the next one out sometime this week. Things can finally get a bit lighter! But not much, you know we all love the gore!

...

Sunlight streamed in through a window weakly, hitting directly onto the closed lids of a snoring reindeer. He grunted, trying to turn away from the light and burrow into his blanket. Unfortunately, the light only grew stronger until with a grumbling complaint, he hauled himself out of the warm, comfortable bed. His companions snored away, excluding a missing blonde chef, blissfully unaware the dawn had come. Hooves tapped against the floor as he stumbled his way out the door, rubbing sleep from his eyes and giving a jaw-cracking yawn.

"Morning." He mumbled to Brook as the skeleton descended from the crowsnest, before pausing in front of the door to the sick bay. No other incidents had occurred in the night he assumed, considering no one had come running for him. He looked to where Robin lay on her chair, fast asleep in the warm morning. Dark circles ringed her eyes, lines of worry creasing her mouth and forehead. She had likely been up most of the night.

Cautiously, the doctor pushed open the door to his inner sanctum, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the dark interior. His nose twitched, and he steeled himself for whatever the day may bring to him. The door clicked shut behind him, startling one of the room's occupants from their light doze. Appraising eyes ran over the two quickly, before pulling out the needed supplies he would require for the day. "Go get some sleep, I can take over."

Luffy swayed as he stood up, half a mind on protesting he was fine before Chopper sent a stern look at him, pointing at the door with one hoof. "I can handle this. I'll wake you if anything changes, now get out."

He nodded wearily, looking one more time to the woman sleeping peacefully for the moment, strawhat gripped tightly to her chest. "She fell asleep just before dawn." He mumbled, slowly making his way out. The thought of sleeping actually sounded really good, but he had something else to do first. So, with unsteady legs and eyes that refused to stay open, he stumbled his way through the ship to his destination.

Low muttering and the sound of pots and pans being noisily moved heralded that the blonde cook was already underway making them breakfast. He looked up, freezing as Luffy stumbled his way in. The man looked…horrible. His eyes were bloodshot and dark circles surrounded him. His hair was disheveled, more noticeable with the absence of his treasured hat. He looked like he could barely walk, and slumped down immediately into the first chair he came too.

"Luffy…you alright?" Came the cautious inquiry.

"Foooooooood." The man groaned, rolling his eyes up pathetically to the cook, who had come to stand next to him. "Huuuuungry." The blonde's eye twitched, teeth setting down a little harder on his cigarette. "Nami needs food too."

Crisis averted, the name of their navigator immediately cooled the blonde's temper before it could reach its boiling point. "Hai, it should be ready soon." He looked over to where he had been preparing a simple, but highly nutritious, soup for her. Starvation left the body unable to cope with complex foods, he knew all too well. "How is she?"

A shadow passed behind his captain's dark eyes. "You should visit her." Was all he said, reaching an arm out to snag a loaf of bread cooling on the counter. He ignored his crewmates sputtering, chewing slowly on the bread and thinking of the night's events.

She couldn't tell him much, whether her mind couldn't cope with remembering her time with whoever took her or she truly didn't know, was anyone's guess. He didn't press after asking her who it had been, and the subject was dropped. Very little had been said, she had been content to sit there, staring at the hat in her lap and just feeling it. Several times, she had said that same weird phrase; _It's really you_, as if she had to re-affirm it to herself. When fatigue finally forced her to sleep again, he doubted him and Zoro together could have pried that hat out of her grasp, broken fingers or not.

A plate was set down in front of him, and he opened his eyes slowly. Sanji continued past him, carrying a tray with two covered bowls and some drinks of some sort on it out the door. Luffy ate listlessly, his mind too much in turmoil of the state of his nakama. This was a situation he couldn't fix by beating someone up; he didn't know what to do.

…

Sanji knocked softly on the door, anticipation and fear twisting his gut around itself. He had never seen Luffy look so…defeated. The blonde dreaded what could have affected their happy-go-lucky captain so much. It was obviously more than just her injuries; he hadn't been nearly so affected when she had nearly died at Drum Island. And anything that could do that to their idiot captain was enough to put him on edge.

The door swung open, Chopper peering out at him. "I figured you'd be hungry, so I brought you some breakfast."

A tiny gurgle issued from the doctor's stomach, making him blush. He looked back to where Nami was sitting numbly, half-way through having her bandages changed. He opened the door further, motioning for the blonde to come in. "Wait here for a moment." He muttered, hooves clacking softly as he returned to the woman's side.

Sanji watched as the animal spoke quietly to the ginger-haired female, no reaction coming from her at all for several long moments when he had finished. Finally, she looked up, blinking. Then turned to look where he stood, giving her his best smile. She flinched, eyes squeezing shut and a fine trembling sweeping through her body. She nodded, returning her gaze to her lap where the strawhat rested. Chopper motioned him over, returning to his task of changing out soiled bandages for fresh ones.

"Nami-swan, I brought you a nutritious breakfast to help restore your radiant glow to your delicate skin." He tried to ignore the obvious fear in her eyes as she looked at him through her bangs, twitching every time he got too close. "I brought you something too, Chopper."

"Arigatou." Chopper absently replied, ignoring the gurgles coming demandingly from his stomach. Preventing infection from spreading any further was what mattered at the moment, he could go a little longer without food. "Nami, you should eat. You'll need all your strength."

She nodded slightly, unwilling to take her eyes off the man in front of her. She shuddered, recalling all too well what he had done in her dream last night. She played with the brim of the hat, using it to anchor her to reality. "Th-thank you, Sanji." She whispered, hissing through her teeth as Chopper moved to a particularly sore wound on her leg.

"Sanji-san, I need to ask that you come back later." Chopper all but ordered, his eyes wide as he gently probed the nasty cut with one hoof. High on her upper right thigh, red lines trailing outward from it, was a mark of such cruelty; the deer nearly remembered his old hatred of humanity.

The cook nearly argued, they had all been waiting so long to find their navigator and to now shoo him away after getting only a brief look! But then she cried out and he got a look at what had the animal's attention so fully, his lone visible eye widening at the inflamed mark. Infection oozed out of it whenever it was touched even lightly. "I will see you at lunch time, Nami-san." He smiled reassuringly at her, though her head was tilted too far down to see, teeth and eyes clenched tightly. He paused briefly at the door, wishing he could help or at least stay, but Chopper would do better with minimal distraction.

If Chopper had been a lesser deer, he may have partaken in the language that Sanji and Zoro were so infamous for. Instead, he settled for mentally beating himself as he looked over the extent of the wound. In the rush of guaranteeing she would not die last night, he hadn't had time to thoroughly look her over and this was just one of many injuries he knew, would need some extensive care. He would have to give her a full physical as well, though he could guess what he would fine. He may be an animal, but an animal that lived around humans and was trained by a doctor. He had been taught what injuries meant what and to piece together a scenario from them. She wouldn't be the first rape victim he had seen. No town was without its dirty little secrets, especially with a king like Drum had.

"Nami-san, could you please lay down?" He asked, watching the yellow-ish, thick gunk seeping from the cut marks. It was an older wound, one that had been festering for quite some time. Angry lines of blood poisoning streaked down her leg, ending just above her knee. Other lines extended up just past her navel. "I need to drain this. I'm sorry." He apologized, prepping two needles. One contained a painkiller, the other some antibiotics. She would require a daily shot of those every day until the infection was fully gone. Not something Chopper was looking forward to giving her.

"What's wrong?" She asked, swinging her legs back up onto the bed, biting her lip to prevent herself from crying out. Curious, she looked to where Chopper had been paying attention, immediately looking away. _Something to remember him by. How right he was._ Tears prickled in her eyes, and she lay down quickly to avoid looking at the mark again.

She focused on her breathing, keeping it slow and steady. It wasn't so bad with Chopper, easier to stay focused on where she was. For all his taunts, that bastard had never indulged in mimicking their doctor. He had restrained it to only the human members of the crew, and only the male ones at that. He had joked about ruining Robin for her as well, but he had flippantly said, "No dick, no point." Still, there had always been that fear that one day, that familiar little blue nose would have a pair of green eyes above it and a twisted smirk beneath.

She felt a tiny prick in her arm, watching from the corner of her eye as Chopper injected a clear liquid into her. A pleasant numbness flowed outward from the spot, relaxing her muscles and relieving more pain than she had realized she'd had. _Course, when it's there all day every day, I guess you just forget how it feels when it's not there._ Giddiness followed in the wake of the numbness, the drug fogging her mind. Chopper watched as her eye glazed over, a small smile pulling at her lips. Patiently he waited several minutes to pass, letting the anesthetic take full effect on her body. When her eyes drooped a bit, he began the arduous task of pressing as much of the infection out of the wound as possible.

She whimpered, but it wasn't too bad. A sharp pinching sensation, nothing she couldn't handle. She knew better than to cry or scream; it would only egg them on. If she stayed quiet, they would usually get bored and leave. _But there's always more waiting._ She shook her head, groaning at what the movement did to her skull and drawing the reindeer's attention briefly. _I'm on the Thousand Sunny, not there. This is Chopper, not those men._ She repeated the words over and over in her head, knowing they were truth but unable to believe in them. A sharper pinch to the leg left her gasping, looking down where streaks of red intermingled with the thicker yellow liquid coming from her leg. Her hands clenched instinctively into the bedding, as much as the splints would allow, which only caused them to hurt as well. Hot liquid scalded a line down her cheek where a tear slipped out, teeth worrying at an already ravaged lower lip. Her leg shook with the effort of keeping it still and not yanking it away, the pinching steadily becoming an outright horrendous pain. _He's helping me. He's not doing this for fun. This is my nakama!_

He kept going until only blood poured from the wound, no more trace of the pus that had been eating away at her underneath the skin. A quick look showed the woman nearly as pale as the sheets she lay upon, breathe escaping in small, frantic puffs of air. No delusions were made; the animal knew there were more places on her body that would need to be looked after like this. The only thing was, she couldn't handle another round of going through such a thing. _She's in such a fragile state. This is going to take a long time for her to recover. If she ever fully recovers._ Antlers shook at the dismal thoughts, but it was always hardest to hold onto hope in the darkest hours. And these were the darkest he had seen.

"A-Are you done?" She asked hesitantly when she felt nothing more than a warm, damp cloth cleaning her thigh.

"Hai! I just need to give you a shot…" He waited till she nodded before going back to cleaning the area and re-dressing it. "You should eat, I'm sure Sanji-san made something extra good for you." Her stomach gurgled at the thought of real food. Food other than musty bread and the occasional rotten fruit or vegetable. Food she didn't have to beg for pathetically.

She sat up after the needle was withdrawn, wincing as she moved too quickly for her ribs. Chopper had taped them into place, restricting her movements but they still hurt terribly when she twisted or sat up. She nearly cried at the scent of the soup when she lifted the lid, a cramp forming in her belly as it demanded to be fed. Clumsily, she gripped the spoon with bandages fingers, tears irritating her eye again at how much she trembled. The utensil slipped, clattering back to the tray and this time she didn't bother hiding the despair she felt in that moment. A soft cloth dabbed her eye gently, wiping the salty liquid away before it could leave it.

Delicately, Chopper lifted the bowl, testing the heat through the ceramic before lifting it up towards her. He shrugged shyly as the woman stared at him in surprise. "What are nakama for but to help one another out?"

A hesitant nod and she leaned forward to sip from the offered bowl, reveling in the incredible flavors. If there was anything she had eaten in the past more amazing then this soup, she couldn't remember what it was. When she had finished, she leaned back and gave her companion a true, full smile. "Arigatou, Chopper."

Flustered, he felt his cheeks heating up and was suddenly very thankful his fur hid what was an incredibly embarrassing blush. A large yawn from her and he was back to being a professional doctor, urging the young woman to lay back down and rest. Covers were pulled up and she was asleep before Chopper had finished tucking the sides in around her. For now, there was nothing more to do. He would drain more wounds either that night or in the morning and continue administering antibiotics regularly. The doctor finished off the breakfast that had been brought for him, sighing happily and leaning back in his swivel chair. His charge was fast asleep, for once un-plagued by nightmares. Likely, a combination of the drugs he had administered earlier, the fatigue she still suffered from, and having a full belly were helping keep her in a deep, dreamless state.

Contemplating, he looked at the clock, shocked to see it was nearly lunch time. The multitude and extent of so many of her injuries ate up his entire morning just re-dressing. _I should let one of the others in to see her now, while she's asleep. It will be easier on every one if they're first encounter doesn't end with her panicking and aggravating her condition any further._ Taking one more look, he left to find one of their other crewmates.

…

Sanji sighed heavily, staring in disgust at the puddle of drool that was dripping its way off the dining table. Heavy snoring echoed through the kitchen, but he still didn't have the heart to drag his sleeping captain out of his sanctuary. Images replayed in his mind from this morning as he slowly chopped vegetables to sauté for their lunch. The cook faltered, pausing for a moment as he recalled how much like a whipped puppy his favorite thief had looked. Hardly recognizable underneath all the gauze with dark blotches covering most of her exposed skin. His grip on the knife blade tightened, leaving the knuckles white and bloodless. _We'll find who did this to her and I will personally shove their balls down their throat for touching her._

Windows rattled violently as a rather loud snore broke him from his brooding, making the blonde shake his head and return to his work. He would wake the idiot up as soon as he had finished the prep work. For now though, he kept his mind clear with cooking, focusing on his passion. He didn't even notice at first when the other lady of the ship padded in, slipping into a seat next to the captain. A small smirk touched her face at the pool of drool. Something told her the cook would have a job very soon for the sniper of their ship.

Blue eyes watched the chef's movements, though her mind lingered on her friend in the sick bay. She both dreaded and yearned to see her again. Her gaze trailed back over to her captain, realizing he must have stayed with her all night to be sleeping in the presence of food. Three months ago, she would have never believed it could happen, but they had all seen a different side to the happy-go-lucky young man the night they realized Nami was missing.

They hadn't been worried that first night, and that was what likely cost them the small window to find whoever took her before they left. Nami was known for disappearing on the occasional night, usually to go steal beli from some poor unsuspecting sap. Every now and then she'd come back after a night at a bar or from some shopping spree. But she had always returned before lunch. So when she didn't return to the ship by the time Sanji had announced their noon meal, Luffy passed to keep an eye out in the crows nest. When night fell, they began to search the island for her, hoping that she was just lost in some bar or had forgotten the time due to some massive sale in a mall.

As days passed into weeks, more and more he could be found up in the crowsnest, scanning the waters for any sign of their lost navigator. She had spent several nights with him, keeping him company in his silent vigil. Once, he had asked her, "Am I a bad nakama?" The heartbreak and worry in his voice had shattered her heart, and she'd gathered the younger man in a hug, telling him they'd find her. Robin prayed to never see him in such a state ever again.

"Are you hungry, Robin-chan?" Sanji asked, glancing over his shoulder at her. It was interesting to have him ask her something without going into his love-cook mode. It just went to show how affected he was by this whole thing. That and the two full ash trays sitting on the counter near him were clear indication of his current stress levels. She nodded slightly to his inquiry, amused at how he stopped what he was doing so that he could make something for her.

"She's doing better, by the way. I saw her this morning briefly. She was awake; Chopper's fixing her up. Would you like to take her lunch?" He very nearly regretted offering to let her do the simple task, but the look in the other woman's eyes let him know he had made the right decision. "It should be ready soon."

"Thank you. Really, thank you, Sanji-san." She knew what it cost him to put off being able to see the ginger-haired girl. He wanted to see her again as badly as she did. The man set a plate down in front of her with a variety of pastries and tarts. She gave him a surprised look, wanting to know how he had whipped these up so quickly. In response, he set a tray down next to her with more of the delicacies. They were simple foods, lacking his regular flourishes, but wholesome. "I'm sure Nami will love them. I'll tell you her reaction."

The woman picked up her plate, stacking it onto the tray, before taking it with her to go see her friend. She would have to find a way to properly thank Sanji for what he was doing for her. Inside the kitchen, said chef sighed again. _I didn't want to have to wait till dinner, but Robin-chan needs this far more than me at the moment._ Luffy gave another window-shattering snore, and the blonde casually kicked the chair out from under him, waking him up instantly.

"Wha…?" Dark eyes blinked as they looked around, one arm coming up to wipe drool from his mouth.

"It's lunch time, moron. Clean up the table or you're not getting any." Sanji grumbled, dropping the vegetables and meat he had diced earlier into a large wok. "Go call everyone while you're at it."

"LUNCHTIIIIIIME!" The captain hollered, rapidly scrubbing the table clean of all his sleep-drool before sliding into a seat again. "Meat, meat, meat. Hmm, I should bring something to Nami and Chopper, shouldn't I?" He mused out loud.

"I'm right here." A small voice piped up, Chopper walking into the room. "Robin is in there already with something for her to eat if she wakes up." He was tired already, and his voice showed that weariness.

An icy wave of dread washed through Luffy, and he looked at the reindeer sharply. "What do you mean, 'if'?"

...

**AN:** And I'm done. Yeah, I was gonna write more, but I really do love leaving you on a cliffhanger! Shishishi! So, reviews make me write faster, just so you know. .

Umm, oh if you're interested in how far along a chapter is to being done, i'm trying to update my profile everyday to reflect % of completion of chapters. Much love guys, if you've gotten this far, I hope its cause you're enjoying the story. That's the whole point of writing these afterall, am I right?


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

AN: So, hello! To those who read the update before it was replaced with this chapter, I apologize again for the wait that my life forced upon my writing. Too many things happening, I had to take 2 years off. But this and Two of Heart are my top updating priorities now. Also, I'm going to give another warning about this story. I don't like how light its gotten so quickly, expect a lot of darkness. This is not a happy story primarily. Also...Frank and Brook likely won't be mentioned again. I just don't feel like writing them so pretend they took a vacation on an island for rest of this story. Anywho...on with the show!

~.~.~

Chopper blinked at him, stunned by the desperation in the rubberman's voice. "I gave her a sedative to help with the pain. She may not wake up for some time."

A sigh shuddered out of the lean man's frame and he sank back down into the chair he had unconciously bolted up from. One hand swept over his face and up to rake through his hair, hunger forgotten at the rush of fear that had engulfed him from misunderstanding the little deer. Sanji bopped the doctor on the head, muttering something about being more careful with his choice of words before setting plates down.

"I'll go fetch the stupid Marimo." The blonde ground out his used-up cigarette, immediately pulling out a new one.

A heavy silenced settled in the kitchen, Chopper fidgetting self-conciously as Luffy continued to sit still with his head buried in his hands. Usopp continued to snore, oblivious to everything going on. "Chopper?"

The doctor squeaked and nearly ran for cover as the silence was broken, rooted to the spot as his captain stared at him through his bangs. "Y-yes?"

"Does she hate me?" Frantically, Chopper shook his head at the idea that Nami would ever hate them. He was cut off from voicing such by the captain's next words though. "I do."

A loud snort and sleepy moan interrupted them as the sniper groggily opened his eyes. For a brief moment, the doctor saw a level of despair and self-hatred in his captain's eyes he never thought possible, before it vanished as the young man snatched a bite from the sniper's plate. He remained silent as the two fought, wondering how no one else had noticed that the carefree smile...wasn't really carefree anymore. In those two words, he saw the light that had guided and lifted them through so many trials and hardships, simply vanish.

As the other two men entered the room, one sighing at the disruptive pair and the other simply sitting down, Chopper took the chance to really look them over. For all that he pretended to sleep all the time, Zoro's eyes were ringed nearly black with obvious signs of not sleeping. The doctor doubted he had gotten more than a couple hours for days, ever since that damned bird had brought Nami's eye. Sanji reeked of smoke, chain-smoking worse than the cigar-smoking marine who hounded them. Usopp had the least outward signs of the stress and despair they had all been going through, until one went into his workshop and saw piles of gadgets and inventions. It was his way of venting.

And each one was trying to hide it in their own way. Perhaps, they hadn't noticed how they were each suffering, because they didn't want too. Because addressing it and giving voice to it, just made it real. So they kept trying to delude themselves and everyone else on the ship that they were alright. Except, Chopper realized, he couldn't hide from it anymore. With two little words, his tiny bubble of protection had been broken and he saw clearly. And it frightened him to what the future held for them all.

~.~

Robin sat quietly beside the bed of her friend, watching the steady rise and fall of the younger woman's chest. She looked almost peaceful, sleeping under the effects of the sedative. If one could look past the bandages, splints, and gauze. Absently she took a bite out of a pastry, not even tasting it as she continued to look her friend over. The ginger-haired girl had always been petite, but now, bones stuck out under her skin creating sharp angles where before had been curves. She suspected every rib and vertebrae could be counted with no effort.

Unconsciously, she reached out to smooth back the bangs that had fallen over her closed remaining eye. The sleeping girl flinched back at the contact, murmuring in her sleep fitfully. "I'm sorry, Nami. I should have went with you when you asked me too." The dark-haired lady whispered.

Dreams tortured her every night, of how if she had just gone with the navigator, she could have saved her. Her breath hitched as her composure slipped enough to allow two tears to trail down her cheek. Viciously she swiped them away before relaxing and maintaining her vigil. It was painful to see the damage that had been done to that frail body, but she was still alive! Something they had all feared was not the case. She was alive and they would protect her from anything ever happening to her again. Fists clenched and teeth ground together, thinking of what monsters could have done this to another human. And what she would do to them in return.

Sunlight streamed in briefly as the door opened and shut silently, followed by the soft tapping of hooves. "Her hair is still dirty."

"Aa."

"The bleeding hasn't stopped." Robin pointed to where red had leaked through enough to stain through the gauze and sheet.

"There's too much infection, I can't close some of them with stitches until I get it out." He moved around the woman, going to his cabinets and browsing through them. "I need supplies, proper supplies. I'm not...I'm not equipped for this."

"I'll help you categorize what you're out of." Long legs unfolded as she stood up to move behind him. "Did you tell Luffy?"

Chopper nodded, jotting down notes as Robin perused the higher shelves and relayed what they were out of or low on. They focused on the task, keeping their minds occupied and away from darker thoughts. The sun had begun to descend when they finished cataloging everything, the doctor wordlessly moving to prep the next shot of antibiotics and preparing fresh gauze to replace that which blood had leaked through. The historian watched him for a moment before moving to retrieve a large basin, filling it with water and grabbing a towel.

She pulled a chair up beside the bed, soaking the hand towel and wringing it out before lifting a lock of matted hair and begining to wipe it clean. She tried not to notice how fast the water turned red, tried not to look up everytime a wound was exposed before being replaced with clean white, tried to not hear the painful moans coming from the frail body who's hair she washed. Most of all, she tried to not stare into the gaping void in the young navigator's face as Chopper cleaned that particular spot. And if her hands shook, no one was there to notice.

"She'll be waking up soon." Chopper stated, reaching out to take the bowl of crimson-tainted water and cloth from her hands. "She's not herself when she wakes. It may be best to leave and not overwhelm her."

Wearily she nodded, standing up and striding towards the door. Robin paused, one hand on the door and looked back briefly, before whisking herself outside. And nearly tripping over a pair of long legs sticking out near the door. Dark eyes stared at the floor, no indication he had even noticed her flickering in the troubled depths. "Captain?"

A slow blink before he tipped his head back against the wall, gazing up at her. "Yosh."

"You should get some rest." A hand patted him on the shoulder. "She's alive."

He hm'ed in response, rolling his head to the side to look at the door she had just exited from. If she said anything more, he neither heard nor saw, too focused on his inner thoughts. Yes, she was alive. But she wasn't the Nami he knew anymore. His navigator had been so bold and full of life, carefree like himself. Now, all that remained was a frightened, tortured shell of a woman who had her eyes cruelly opened to the evil of the world.

Exhaustion dragged his eyelids down, the last week's events catching up to him. _I should sleep. After I check on her one more time._ He thought drowsily, not even noticing as his head followed the same path as his eyelids, drooping down until his chin rested on his chest. The young man never realized he had dozed off, sitting there next to the infirmary, until something caused him to startle awake again. There was no noise, nothing out of place, except a deep sense of urgency and panic.

He pushed himself to his feet, swaying lightly before the adrenaline pushed the last of his weariness aside. Softly the young man prowled around his ship, brow furrowing at the nagging feeling insistently telling him that there was something wrong. He scanned the inky horizon, but no ships or islands could be seen. Luffy paced past his first mate, noting the man too was subtly looking around from where he sat against a wall with his head bowed as if in sleep.

"You too?"

"Aa."

"I'll keep an eye out." Zoro muttered, cracking his back as he stood up and wandered over to the crow's nest. He grabbed the first rung, halting immediately as a blood-curdling shriek lit up the night. He met his captain's eyes, both wide in alarm and panic.

"NAMI!"

AN: Sorry also for long wait and shortness of this chapter. Hopefully next one will be longer and up much sooner :)


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